(October 2013) – Lynn Maricle may be retired from her days as a musician and school teacher, but she’s never lost the drive to give back to her community, albeit in her own way. Maricle, of Hanover, Ind., heads the Madison Performing Arts Foundation, which works to bring classically trained musicians to the area giving audiences, young and old, a unique experience.
The 2013-2014 season begins Oct. 4 with organist Marilyn Keiser. The former teacher from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music in Bloomington, Ind., will perform at 7 p.m. at the Trinity Methodist church free of charge and open to the public.
Maricle said that she is especially excited for Keiser’s performance because of her connection to a number of local musicians who studied with her at IU.
Each year Maricle and the members of the foundation try to mix things up and bring new performers as well as some popular acts that have become standards.
“We have some new things, and we have a couple things that we’ve done before that we’re bringing back. We always have the Louisville Brass in December because that is such a big crowd pleaser. We love to bring them back,” Maricle said.
Louisville Brass is a band composed of University of Louisville professors who Maricle says excel with music for the holiday season and enjoy playing for the audiences in Madison.
“I’ve seen them several years, and each time the program is varied. Hardly ever do they repeat something that they’ve played before.”
The concert series is free to the public thanks to an anonymous patron as well as donations from attendees who have the opportunity to give at each performance. This season, the majority of the performances will be held at local churches except for the Madison Community Band, which is slated for Dec. 10 at Clifty Inn inside Clifty Falls State Park.
Other highlights from the season schedule include Dr. Andrew Winner and Dr. Lisa Spurlock. Dr. Winner is a professor at Northern Kentucky University who will be expertly playing the guitar at his Jan. 10 appearance. On April 11, Spurlock will perform with some of her best students from the University of Louisville in a harp ensemble.
The season will conclude in Nov. 2014 with a community performance of ‘The Messiah,” just before Thanksgiving.
Maricle, a former choral instructor at Madison Consolidated High School, has been involved with the foundation for so long that she can hardly remember when she began her involvement with the program.
A love for the arts drives Maricle’s passion for the project and she hopes others will feel the same after attending the season’s kickoff, and then continuing to attend.
“I think that all of our performers are unique, and I think it’s wonderful, personally, to see someone who has devoted their life to their particular art, whether it’s playing the harp or the guitar, singing or whatever it is. Just to see this product that unfolds in front of you in a live situation and to understand that this person has devoted their life to this genre.”
According to Maricle, crowds in the past have been between 75 and 100 and are composed of a variety of people. Of course, coming from her experience with high school students, she realizes that classical music may not exactly sound that compelling to some.
“As a young person, if you’re wanting to experience something new and unusual and you like music, I think this is a great way to broaden your horizons and be able to experience something with a common audience of people like you,” she said.
“To have that spiritual experience that music can provide for you... It takes you to another realm when you experience these different performers.”
Year after year, Maricle devotes her time to give back to her community to “bring some strength and depth to our communal experience,” and is always planning for the next season.
“It’s just a good way to make life a little better for us all here in southern Indiana.”